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In the few days preceding pay day, budgets and nerves can become pretty strained, but necessity is the mother of invention, and I have become a boss at dining on literal dimes! Last week was particularly tight, and although stressful in many ways, I enjoyed taking on the challenge of creating tasty meals within the confines of my pantry. On Thursday night, my latest culinary adventure birthed a new family favorite: Turmeric Glass Noodles.

Not many families may have glass (or mung bean thread) noodles in their pantries, but as you know, I'm Asian, so I grew up around this stuff. And at $.79 for eight bunches of these delicate noodles, you betcha I stock up on 'em whenever I'm at an Asian market! Between Asian grocers, Trader Joe's, and Aldi, my budget-conscious grocery lists are always covered.

So, back to the noodles. As you may have noticed, I've been obsessed with ground turkey lately, because it's pretty lean and crazy cheap! Our local Aldi carries it for $1.99/roll (about 1 lb.), and one roll is all this recipe takes. I'm also a huge fan of Trader Joe's Cruciferous Crunch Mix, a bag of already-shredded cabbage, kale, and brussels sprouts that costs around $3. All of the other ingredients are pretty usual suspects (garlic, minced onion, soy sauce, vegetable stock, turmeric, and coconut sugar), and are always in residence in my kitchen anyway, so we'll just count those as $0. When all is said and done, this dinner fed two hungry adults, with enough left over for my wife's lunch on Friday, at a total cost of $6, or $2 per meal. Yeah, baby!

Add the full bag of Cruciferous Crunch Mix, stir, and cover skillet to wilt the vegetables over medium-low heat

Once the water is boiling, remove from heat and place glass noodles in hot water. These will cook up fairly quickly, and are best when not overcooked, so I like stirring them in hot water, rather than boiling them, until I'm happy with the consistency (usually around 5 minutes or so)

Add the newly softened noodles to the skillet containing the turkey-vegetable mixture, and mix thoroughly to soak the noodles in the rich yellow "sauce"

Enjoy your life.

I hope this easy, tasty, and cheap recipe finds its way onto the screens of people who need it.

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About the Author

Sarah Ouano is a naturopathic doctor and writer. A fierce advocate for health equity and rights of the marginalized, she frequently writes about the intersection of naturopathic medicine and public health, throwing in personal anecdotes and tasty (and practical) recipes along the way.